Until some new obsession comes along…I did just buy two bags of Christmas special edition Nestle TollHouse baking chips, after all.

I also got a new camera lens last weekend. So I did what any normal food blogger would do to practice…

I baked cookies.

I mean, why practice on a bowl of apples when taking pictures of fall baked goods is so much more fun? Plus, I had a can of puréed pumpkin already open–a perfect excuse for cookie baking, if you ask me!

I was incredibly pleased with how these cookies turned out. They were so soft and puffy, and had more of a cake-like consistency than do regular cookies. It was kind of like eating a small pillow of cookie-cake. Eek, so good! Um, so good, I ate two before dinner. And one for breakfast the next morning. So much for losing those extra five pounds before Christmas. I’m doomed, ya’ll.

They weren’t overly pumpkin-y, either, but with the addition of the pumpkin pie spice and nutmeg, they were a wonderful taste of fall.

Can you believe these cookies were even softer on day two? Yay for pumpkin puree!

Pumpkin is definitely my number one go-to flavor for fall. What’s yours?

In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat butter on medium to high speed for about 30 seconds. Add sugars and beat until combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl occasionally. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in pumpkin and vanilla until combined. Next, add if flour mixture until combined. Stir in the chocolate chips.

Droup dough by 2-tablespoons on your prepared cookie sheets, approximately 2 inches apart. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until edges are light brown. Cool on cookie sheets for 2 minutes, then remove to wire racks to cool completely.

Notes

adapted from Better Homes and Gardens Christmas Cookies, 2012

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Considering that it’s still in the 90’s here this week, I’m having an awfully hard time wrapping my mind around the idea that the holidays are going to be here in less than three months. And while it seems just a little crazy that we’re already starting to think about holiday planning, I know these three months are going to fly by.

That’s why I’m so excited about Brenda’s 12 Months of Christmas Treats–it’s a wonderful opportunity to start planning ahead before getting overwhelmed with the hustle and bustle of the holiday season. Start your baking now–freeze your goodies–and you’ll be prepared for a low stress holiday.

Or, you could do what I do, and just eat all of your goodies before the week is out.

I’ve had this recipe dog-eared for months, and even my husband kept asking when I was going to make it. His favorite dessert (one of the few he’ll actually eat) is apple pie, so I knew this sweet bread would be a big hit.

It mixed up quickly (especially since the Tall Boy shredded all my apples–he really wanted this bread!), and smelled absolutely heavenly while it was baking. This bread wasn’t overly sweet; it was very light, with just the slightest hint of fall spice, and it was incredibly moist from the apples. No dry bread for me!

The streusel topping gave it a nice crunch, although I highly recommend adding nuts (walnuts or pecans) to your topping. I did not add them here because the Tall Boy won’t eat them, but if you like ‘em–go for it. If I didn’t live with someone with weird eating issues, they’d be all over the top of this loaf.

In a large bowl, beat butter with an electric mixer for about 30 seconds. Add sugar, and beat on medium to high speed until combined. Add buttermilk and baking powder, beat until combined. Add eggs and vanilla, beat until combined. Add flour, salt and apple pie spice and beat until--you guessed it--combined. Stir in the apples and raisins.

Spoon batter into prepared pan and sprinkle with streusel topping. Bake for 60-65 minutes, or until a wooden toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean.

Cool in pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Remove from pan, and allow to cool completely before slicing.

For the streusel topping:

Stir together brown sugar and flour in a small bowl. Cut in butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in chopped nuts, if using.

Notes

just barely adapted from Better Homes and Gardens Fall Baking, 2012

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Want to see some other Christmas yummies? Be sure to check out all of the links below!

While I love anything fall related, the creepiness and gore of Halloween is just not for me (although, all the candy and confections that come along with Halloween are another story).

But last spring, we took our first family vacation, and went to DisneyWorld. We were the ultimate tourists, purchasing the complete Disney travel guide and “studying up” for months before our actual trip. Top on Doodle’s list of “must-see” attractions?

The Haunted Mansion.

Since he was still just four years-old, I was a bit worried about whether or not the ride would be too frightening for him.

We ended up on this ride four times. And now he’s fixated on decorating our house to look like the mansion for Halloween.

So while I’m attempting to decorate the house in fall flora, pumpkins, gourds, and acorns, I’m dodging rubber rats, spiders, and witch fingers left and right. Seriously, if the Tall Boy tells him it would be a funny joke to hide some fake bug under my bed pillow, we’re going to have some issues around here.

Anyway, since I’m not above bribing my kiddo with fun holiday treats to make him think I’m mom-supreme, we made these little spider cookies over the weekend. It’s about as crafty and creative as I get. And really not even all that creative, because literally hours after the idea popped into my head, I saw an entire kit for this project in the Target Halloween section.

So much for ingenuity.

He loved ‘em though, and they were definitely an easy project for little helpers in the kitchen.

In a large bowl, mix together cake mix, melted better and egg. Shape into 1-inch balls--dough will be stiff.

Place cookies 2 inches apart on a Silpat or parchment lined baking sheet. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until set. Cool for 1 minute, then remove to wire racks.

Spread a tablespoon of frosting over half of the cookies. Place four licorice strips on top of the frosting for the legs. Top with remaining cookies. Use additional frosting to attach red hots for eyes.

Since I live with a picky five year-old, I can’t tell you how many times I’ve said, “Oh, it’s just like macaroni, but shaped different.” This kid will eat about anything if you call it macaroni.

The Tall Boy is a huge pasta fan, too. Any time I get desperate for menu-planning ideas and ask him to contribute, he always suggests either: A) spaghetti, or B) lasagna. Now, as much as I love lasagna, it’s not usually something I tackle for a “quick and easy” weeknight meal.

There are, however, a million different ways to use pasta as a quick and easy, low-cost, and healthy weeknight (or anytime) meal. Pasta easily fits into:

Your Lifestyle – Pasta meals can be fast and easy to make on the go! Many pasta meals can be on the table in less than a half-hour making pasta an ideal ingredient for everyone; from moms on the run to college students in between classes.

Your Budget – As of March 2012, on average pasta costs $1.45 per pound. Add lean meats and proteins to your pasta for a low budget meal that the whole family will love!

Your Diet – With roughly 100 calories per half cup serving, very little sodium or fat and no cholesterol, pasta is an ideal foundation for building healthy meals. Pasta is a great delivery system for protein-packed veggies and lean meats.

And, leave it to me…even when making a pasta dish, I can find a way to put a Mexican spin on it. Although this dish was very light, it was heavy on flavor. Since we like plenty of heat in our meals, I left the seeds in the jalapeño and sautéd them along with the peppers and onions. If that’s not your thing, just leave ‘em out. Or, go ahead and seed the jalapeño, and dice ‘em up fine for some extra flavor and not a lot of heat. Also, you could easily substitute chicken for the steak in this recipe. Load up on the veggies, skip the shredded cheese, and you have a quick, easy, and healthy dinner.

Do you want recipes for healthy apple muffins, coconut chocolate popcorn, two full menus with grocery lists, activities for your family and more?! Then go to eMeals Family Week PDF and print it out to get ready for a week of family fun!

September 24-28 is family week and eMeals is celebrating! Helping families come together is an important mission for eMeals. Let’s face it, today’s families are busy–and it’s often hard not to have to eat on the run, or even at different times, depending on family member’s schedules. But it’s critical to spend time together as a family at the dinner table: according to statistics, children who share their meals with family are less likely to smoke, drink, or do drugs than those who don’t.

During Family Week, eMeals has created a list of activities with an accompanying recipe that encourages families to come together during dinner. Whether you already sit down and eat with your family or you are a family who is always on the go, make some extra time in your schedule to have fun and enjoy these activities and meals with your children.

As a mom, I can’t tell you how important meal time is at my house. Take a few minutes to slow down each day and spend quality time with your kids–or your spouse, parents, siblings, friends–whoever is near and dear to your heart. I think we often rush through the week and forget what’s really important in our days.

Click HERE to read more about this wonderful event and check out all of the awesome partners who stand behind emeals and bringing families together. While you are there, be sure to download the emeals activity plan and recipes too, then head over to Facebook and enter to win some fabulous prizes.

Right now eMeals is also offering a 15% discount on any of their regular eMeals plans. Just use the code FAMILY at checkout.

**While I am an eMeals affiliate, this was not a sponsored post. My family uses eMeals on a weekly basis, and we love it. All opinions are my own.

While I’m busy perusing fall baking magazines, going crazy over college football and getting excited about soups and stews, apple cider, and anything pumpkin….

It’s still in the 90’s here.

Whatsupwiththat?

So, when I had the idea for a sugar cookie milkshake, I knew I had to try it–before the last of the summer heat dissipates (anytime is fine, thankyouverymuch). Plus, since I didn’t actually use any ice cream in the shake, it’s fairly healthy. Right?

Of course, you certainly could use ice cream in this, but believe me when I say you really don’t need to (wanting to is a completely different story, and had I had vanilla ice cream in the freezer, I might have done it. ).

The frozen bananas provided plently of thickness, and since I used coconut milk, it was very creamy and smooth.

Aaaaand, I might have had one of these before dinner instead of waiting until dessert.

serves one. Seriously, this tastes just like a sugar cookie! Add a bit of cinnamon for a snickerdoodle version.

Ingredients

⅔ cup milk (I used coconut milk)

1 frozen, sliced banana

¼ cup sugar cookie mix

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

½ teaspoon cinnamon (optional)

Instructions

Blend all ingredients together until smooth. Slurp and enjoy!

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Now, for the giveaway…

It’s back to school time which means car pools, soccer practice, recitals and maybe a little time for mom thrown in for good measure. Having an on-the-go lifestyle can be challenging to say the least and Milk Unleashed is here to help!

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In fact, the Tall Boy and I have learned not to call any meal “breakfast,” “lunch” or “dinner,” but rather a “snack.” Doodle is all about snacking, and not so much into eating actual meals.

I, however, am into snacking and eating actual meals.

I’m also not into exercising, but rather finding ways to avoid it. Ugh, don’t mention anything to the Tall Boy about the elliptical machine collecting dust under the stairs or the multiple games I insisted we buy for the Wii so exercising would seem like “fun.” ‘Cause then he’ll make fun of me and say he told me so…and I’m the only one who gets to say that in this house (kidding. But not really).

But also, I don’t really consider anything that makes me sweat “fun.” I’ve tried to be all sporty and exercise-y, but it just isn’t me.

So instead, I often look for ways to lighten up sweets so I don’t feel guilty about my non-sportiness.

This popcorn is super easy, and because I used a bag of JiffyPop popcorn that is only one Weight-Watchers point per serving, it’s also fairly guilt-free!

Have you ever wanted to attend a blog conference but couldn’t afford to take the time away from your family or job?

Don’t want to spend a crazy amount of money on airfare, hotel room and conference fees?

Yeah, I know the feeling.

But the good news? Now you don’t have to! Ashton from Something Swanky and Dorothy from Crazy for Crust have created Online BlogCon. And it’s just what it sounds like–an online blogging conference! Like any other conference, Online BlogCon has speakers, and Ashton and Dorothy have rounded up some really awesome ones–check them out here.

The conference runs from October 22 through October 24, and since it’s all online, you don’t have to be in front of your computer at a certain time–with your $15 registration, you’ll be able to access the site at any timefor all the action. So, if you’re going to be at work during the day (like me), don’t worry–simply log into the site when you can to get all of the goodies!

And, with your paid registration, you’re eligible to enter this giveaway for the All-New Kindle Fire HD. How awesome is that!?!? Check it out:

So, get your comfy clothes ready, and I’ll see you at Online BlogCon on October 22! What are you waiting for? Go register!

Here’s how the giveaway works:

The only mandatory entry (worth 5 entries) for this giveaway is to register to attend Online BlogCon, which you can do here. After you fulfill that entry requirement, there are LOTS of ways for you to enter! Simply click through the rafflecopter form to like our sponsors and affiliates links. Each one grants you another entry into the giveaway!

I’m actually a HUGE fan of VitaTops, but not a fan of the hefty price tag attached to ‘em. If you’re not familiar with VitaTops, they are a high-fiber, low-calorie snack frequently touted by Hungry Girl and Weight Watchers. I love ‘em, love’ em, love ‘em.

So when I stumbled on a knock-off version of their chocolate chunk muffin over at Dashing Dish, I knew I had to try it. And I’m so glad I did! This version is actually even better than the packaged version, and at only a fraction of the cost. Score!

And while the original recipe uses a standard-size muffin pan, I used my new handy-dandy muffin top pan, just to cut the calories a bit further. Plus, they’re just extra cute this way!